Stand United

I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. Ephesians 4:1-6


Why do we forget that we are one body? Why do we forget that the very same Spirit that dwells in me, dwells in you? We are not all on the same level in our walk with the Lord, but we are all serving the same God, we share the same faith, and the Spirit that abides in one, abides in all who believe in Jesus Christ and have given their lives to Him. You see, the day that you opened your heart to God with all sincerity and asked Him to come in, was the day that you received the love of God in your life. It was the day that you experienced love on a whole new level. Real love. Whatever you thought was love before Christ does not compare to what love is in Christ. God is love therefore we must be humble, gentle, patient, bear each other's burdens in love. We have to be united and be peaceable. Jesus said that a house divided could not stand. He's talking about a family divided cannot stand. A church divided cannot stand. A ministry divided cannot stand. We all have to be on one accord. He has not called the church to be divided. What purpose would we serve in division?? Division is a tool the enemy uses to tear apart lives and we should not allow him to come into our home, our church, our ministry, our jobs, and try to divide what God has called to stand united! When Paul talks about bearing each others burdens in love, he is not talking about being in each others business. He is talking about helping each other during the difficult seasons of our lives with love and patience. I can tell you it is not easy dealing with different characters and emotions on a daily basis. It is not easy to deal with people when they are going through the process that God puts us through and resist. It can get downright ugly! But God has called each of us to be at peace with each other. To help each other lovingly, not with attitude or misgivings. "Well I'm going to help her because the Bible says I should but I really don't want to." God does not honor that attitude. Even though you are doing what the Bible says, you are not doing it in love and God cannot honor it. Bearing each others burdens in love involves praying and interceding for each other. It involves ignoring sarcastic remarks, and pressing forward to help someone even when it seems they don't want your help. It involves encouraging others when you feel you need encouragement yourself. How can you do these things? I can tell that on your own accord you will not be able to do it because your old self will not allow you to, but the Spirit of God empowers you to love, forget, ignore hurtful words, and press forward and not give up on others. We need to stand united in these last days because the devil is working overtime and doubletime to distract the church and divide the church because he knows his time is short and he wants to take as many as he can to where he is going for all eternity - the lake of fire. We cannot give him room or allow him to sneak his way into our lives, our families, and our churches.

Father,
We give You glory, honor, and praise for Your word today. Your word that exhorts us today to stand united and to bear each others burdens in love. We ask You today, Lord, that You would give us the strength to stand united in You and that You would fill us with Your love on a daily basis because love covers a multitude of sin. Love suffers all things and bears all things. That we would be the church, the families, the people, You have called us to be and that Your love would shine through us as we stand united. In Jesus name we thank You Lord.
Amen.